As a single parent, you may find yourself struggling to meet your many responsibilities. But by learning from successful strategies used by other single families, you can achieve a life of enjoyment and fulfilment for you and your children.

While being a single parent can sometimes feel tough and thankless, and you may worry whether you’re giving your children the best start in life, there’s plenty of proof that single parents can raise raise happy, well-balanced and confident children. Read more →

When people ask you about what you do, do you reply “I’m a mother/father” first?

Conversations around being a parent, especially in the media, often get loaded with these extreme terms. It’s as if being a parent is a constant source of worry and stress; or else it’s a constant joy — so much so that every other part of your life pales in comparison. Either way: being a parent isn’t just the most important thing in your life, it’s the ONLY thing, it’s who you are. Read more →

Success is in the eye of the beholder, and as it applies to parents, each one has their own definition. One mom might say her kid getting into Harvard is a sign of ultimate success, while another might think she hit the jackpot if hers ever remembers to flush the toilet without being asked. However, the definition(s) ofhighly successful parents is one that is nearly universally shared, and also one that has much more to do with the parents and very little to do with their kids. Read more →

There I was, a 30-year-old woman who taught preschool and was a private tutor, walking down the aisles at Target when I saw her.

She was a woman with a toddler — no older than 3 — and in the middle of Winter her toddler was gasp — Not. Wearing. Shoes! He just hung out in the shopping cart with his dangling freezing tootsies.

It’s Winter, I thought. What is she thinking? I made my silent smug judgment, picked up my one item I went into Target for, although I left with 50 other things, and walked away knowing I would never do that! Read more →

Becoming a working parent is no easy thing – far from it. Choosing to have a child and balance a day-to-day job can be a stressful, demanding, exhausting way to live your life, and it can equally be a thrilling, enjoyable, and wonderful way to balance out your desire for a family with your need to advance and continue your career.

So if you’ve just become a working parent, are considering becoming one in the future, or know all too well the experiences that being a working parent entails, then check this list out! Read more →

One of the most important things I’ve done as a mom is accept my own imperfections. Not in the sense that I’ve given up on trying to improve, but I’ve accepted that I’m not good or perfect at some things and I don’t have to beat myself up over it all the time. In fact, being too down on yourself because of your imperfections can get in the way of moving forward towards self-improvement.

This must be a universal mom feeling because Hilary Duff also said something about it in a recent interview with E! News. She admits to not being quite back to her pre-baby shape, but she isn’t hung up on it, saying, “It’s obviously important to work hard and eat right and take care of yourself, but being at peace with your flaws is a really sexy thing.” Read more →

One of the hardest things to learn in life, which all adults themselves can attest to (and still struggle with), is learning how to manage emotions. For children in particular, episodes of emotional turmoil can be very common. When kids are young, the intellect is still largely undeveloped, while reactive, emotional behaviors tend to rule. As a survival mechanism, infants learn that reacting brings about their desired response. Tired? Whine. Thirsty? Cry. We’ve all heard of the terrible two’s… Read more →

The comfort and nurturing one-on-one attention from parents while reading together encourages children to form a positive association with reading and books. Books have always played an important role in my son’s life, even before he was born. I read all sorts of marketing and self-improvement books, as well as fashion and computer magazines to the baby in my tummy, hoping it would help him (or her) grow familiar with my voice and the different sounds of the words being read. Read more →